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FRAMINGHAM, Mass., August 8, 2000 — Revenues in the worldwide enterprise system management software market jumped 23% in 1999, landing just short of the $12 billion mark. IDC estimates the market will increase another 117% by 2004, approaching $26 billion.

"Several factors will conspire to drive growth in the system management software market," said Paul Mason, group vice president of System Infrastructure Software at IDC. "These factors include ecommerce growth, the IT skills shortage, the deployment of storage area networks, and the increasing popularity of nontraditional IT devices. Additionally, if vendors can show the middle market that system management software is cost effective, these firms will give the market a big boost."

IDC defines enterprise system management software as software that is used to manage all computing resources — except the network infrastructure – for the end user, small business, workgroup, and enterprise. The overall market contains the following segments: change and configuration management, event automation, job scheduling, output management, performance management, problem management, and storage management.

Storage management presents the largest opportunity and will do so through at least 2004. In 1999, it accounted for $3.2 billion, and the segment will more than double to $7.6 billion in 2004. "eCommerce applications are triggering an explosive need for storage capacity, and enterprises will continually look to storage management solutions to help manage this growing capacity," said Stephen Widen, director for IDC's Storage Software research.

Performance management is the second largest segment. Its 1999 revenues exceeded $2.7 billion, and they will double to $5.4 billion in 2004. Change and configuration management is the fastest-growing segment of the market. According to IDC, its revenues will increase at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 20.2% from 1999 to 2004, compared with a 17% CAGR for the overall market.

U.S. vendors are profiting the most from opportunities in the overall market. In 1999, they dominated the market with an overwhelming 90% of revenues. The North American market uses more system management software than any other region. In 1999, it accounted for 57% of revenues. Western Europe represented the next biggest opportunity, with 27% of the market's wealth.

Information like the above can be found in IDC's report Enterprise System Management Software Market Forecast and Analysis, 2000-2004 (IDC #B22335). The report discusses the market for enterprise system management software. It divides the market into the following segments: storage management, performance management, change and configuration management, event automation, problem management, job scheduling, and output management. Each segment is thoroughly analyzed. Five-year forecasts are provided for each segment, broken down by operating environment and region. Additionally, vendors' 1999 market shares are shown for each segment as well as the overall market. To view the complete table of contents for this report, visit http://www.idc.com and search for 22335. To purchase the report, contact Cheryl Toffel at 1-800- 343-4952 extension 4389.

About IDC

IDC delivers dependable, high-impact insights and advice on the future of ebusiness, the Internet, and technology to help organizations make sound business decisions. IDC forecasts worldwide markets and trends and analyzes business strategies, technologies, and vendors, using a combination of rigorous primary research and in-depth competitive analysis. IDC provides global research with local content through more than 500 analysts in 43 countries worldwide. IDC's customers comprise the world's leading IT suppliers, IT organizations, ebusiness companies, and the financial community. Additional information can be found at http://www.idc.com.

IDC is a division of IDG, the world's leading IT media, research and exposition company.

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